'If Music Be the Food of Love': How James Baldwin Composed Queer Spaces through Music

Abstract

James Baldwin's 1962 novel Another Country employs an eclectic selection of classical music, jazz tracks, and blues standards in creating intimate sites that anticipate Aaron Betsky's concept of 'queer space' (social environments that subvert heteronormative tropes). Drawing on last year's Bohemian Rhapsody, sound clips of the songs contained in Baldwin's novel and brief textual passages, this presentation will explore ways in which music can deterritorialise disparate sites and create more inclusive spaces.